Confident that they knew how to construct a reliable flying machine, the brothers turned their attention to finding practical applications for it. They believed that airplanes eventually would be useful for recreation and transportation. But they realized that the first useful employment of airplanes would be in military capacities. So, they wrote to the U.S. War Department with a proposal to sell their aircraft.
Wilbur and Orville negotiated a contract with the War Department. They promised to develop a plane that could seat two people, fly 40 miles per hour, remain in the air for one hour, and carry enough fuel to travel 125 miles. The two parties agreed on a price of $25,000. The War Department offered a bonus if the plane exceeded the requirements.
In the summer of 1908, the brothers headed to Fort Myer, Virginia, with their Flyer. They completed nine flight trials successfully. On the 10th test flight, however, one of the propellers cracked and broke. The aircraft crashed and was wrecked. Orville was gravely injured and was hospitalized for seven weeks. Worse, his passenger, Lieutenant Thomas E. Selfridge, was killed in the first aircraft casualty.
The War Department agreed to postpone the trials until the following summer. In June 1909, the brothers returned to Virginia with yet another version of their Flyer. The U.S. Signal Corps, part of the U.S. Army, was eager for the Wright brothers to succeed. It knew that European countries, such as France and Germany, were building aerial fleets. The Signal Corps wanted the United States to develop modern aeronautical equipment for the nation’s defense.
この記事は Cobblestone American History Magazine for Kids の November/December 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Cobblestone American History Magazine for Kids の November/December 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
nellie Bly Journalist
nellie Bly's first newspaper articles appeared in print when she was just 20 years old.
Arabella Mansfield -Lawyer
Arabella Mansfield started out life as Belle Babb (1846-1911). She grew up in a Midwest family that valued education. In 1850, her father left to search for gold in California. He died in a tunnel accident a few years later.
Sarah Josepha Hale Editor
Long before Vogue or Glamour caught women's attention, Godey's Lady's Book introduced the latest fashions.
Louise Blanchard Bethune - Architect
Louise Blanchard Bethune (1856-1915) showed early promise in math. Lucky for her, her father was the principal and a mathematics teacher in a school in Waterloo, New York. Instead of going to school, Louise's father taught her at home until she was 11 years old. She also discovered a skill for planning houses. It developed into a lifelong interest in architecture and a place in history as the first professional female architect in the United States.
Sojourner Truth Speaker
There was a time when slavery wastes abolished the institution over a number of decades. New York abolished slavery in 1827. Isabella Baumfree (c. 1797-1883) was born enslaved in Hurley, New York. When she was nine, she was taken from her parents and sold. She then was sold several more times. Some of her owners were cruel and abused her. During that time, she had several children.
Getting Started
In this editorial cartoon, a young 19th-century woman must overcome the obstacle of carrying a heavy burden while clim# a multirung ladder before she can achieve \"Equal Suffrage.\"
Leonora M. Barry - Investigator
When Leonora M. Barry (1849-1923) was a young girl, her family left Ireland to escape a famine. They settled in New York. Barry became a teacher. In 1872, she married a fellow Irish immigrant. At that time, married women were not allowed to work. So, Barry stayed home to raise their three children.
Finding a New Path
For many Americans, this month's mystery hero represents the ultimate modern trailblazer. She is recognized by just her first name.
The Grimké Sisters Abolitionists
Every night, Dinah was supposed to brush the E hair of her mistress, Sarah Moore Grimké (1792-1873). But one night, 12-year-old Sarah stopped Dinah. She wanted to help Dinah instead. They had to be quiet so they wouldn't get caught. It was 1804 in Charleston, South Carolina. The Grimkés were among Charleston's major slaveholding families. Strict laws regulated the behavior of both master and enslaved people.
Frances Willard Leader
During Frances Willard's lifetime (1839-1898), she was the best-known woman in America: She headed the largest women's organization in the worldthe Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). In that role, her abilities shone as a social activist, a dynamic speaker, and a brilliant organizer. She educated women on how to run meetings, write petitions, give speeches, and lobby state and federal legislators.
